


Something I need

by abearofverylittlebrain



Category: British Actor RPF
Genre: Benedict Cumberbatch - Freeform, College, Drunkenness, Eventual Sex, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Lectures, Literature, Party, Professorbatch, Professors, Romance, Students, Teacher-Student Relationship, University
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-06
Updated: 2014-03-07
Packaged: 2018-01-14 17:08:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1274407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/abearofverylittlebrain/pseuds/abearofverylittlebrain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Benedict takes a job as a guest lecturer for a literature class at university. After initial doubts are dispelled he starts enjoying his second college life as a lecturer and soon finds out the soundtrack of his youth “You can’t always get what you want” still applys.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Much Ado About Nothing

_September 23_ rd

Keys, records, laptop, attendance register... For the third time Benedict looked through the items in his briefcase. It was his first day at the university as guest lecturer and therefore he was better safe than sorry. Nothing would have been more embarrassing than failing in his first lecture. Benedict sighed and closed his briefcase before he sat down to enjoy the last sips of his morning coffee. Absentmindedly he browsed through his paper when suddenly his mobile phone buzzed. It was a text from one of his friends.  
 _A great start for your second college life, Prof! I hope this time you’ll sample the delights of college girls ;)_  
What a dork. Benedict chuckled and shook his head. If it was not for his friends he would have never taken this job. Despite the fact he always had a great interest in literature, when he got the offer to work as a guest lecturer for the autumn term he wanted to turn it down immediately. In his position it seemed impossible to work at university properly. However when he heard about the specific plans his curiosity took over. It was time to try something new again and his friends shared his opinion. Of course they could not stop themselves from joking about ‘Ben’s second college life’ and how he got a second chance with college girls. His friends knew very well that he was not the type to go out with any woman just because he can. Still the imagination of him in an auditorium full of young women in their twenties caused a lot of laughter every time they had met in the last months.  
Benedict shook his head as if he wanted to get rid of the thoughts and put his mug down. This was nothing but a new experience and most certainly it had nothing to do with women. Could you even call them women? Most of them would probably act like girls. Hopefully some of them took the class because of their interest in literature and not because they were interested in him. He had quite a few concerns if he was honest. But he would never find out until he tried. And after all it was just for one term, he thought as he grabbed his briefcase and took one last reassuring look in the mirror.  
  


“Yo Liz can I borrow your toothpaste?” Sam yelled through the half open bathroom door.

 “Yeah, sure!” the answer was shouted loud enough to drown out the Spin Doctors singing ‘Two Princesses’ on the radio. The music filled the room just as the warm September sunlight did while Elizabeth shook her hips to the beat, preparing pancakes. It was the first day after the summer break and the only thing that would keep Sam and her from complaining already was an extensive breakfast.

“That smells amazing!” the other girl entered the room and sat down at the table, her hair still wet from the shower.

“It better tastes amazing too” Elizabeth put a plate with pancakes in the middle and sat down as well.  
“To an amazing autumn term”, Sam raised her cup of coffee.

“May it be more exciting than our last one”, her roommate added and chinked cups with her.

“So what’s on today?” Sam asked her friend, her voice muffled by the pancakes in her mouth.

“Nothing too special” Elizabeth said and put some chocolate syrup over her portion. “I have this literature class you wouldn’t take with me. Thanks for that, by the way. Now I’ll have to spend this term together with a bunch of fangirls”, she rolled her eyes and took a bite.

“Hey, not my fault!” Sam tried to defend herself. “I told you I wasn’t interested. And who could have known that guest lecturer officially is one of the sexiest men in Britain?”

“He’s not one of them, he’s fucking number one! And I have no idea how I will make it through this class with 90% of classmates who rave about him all the time” Elizabeth gestured with her fork in the air.

“Go for the boys then”, Sam suggested and gave her a stupid grin. “You need one anyways.”

“That’s pretty rich, coming from you...”

“I want to have fun, I don’t need _one_ ” she winked at Elizabeth before both of them burst into laughter.

“I get your point. Well, we shall see”, Elizabeth took a last bite and washed it down with the last sip of her tea. “Do you mind cleaning up? I have to leave for that class” she grabbed her bag and stopped in front of the door for a last check in the mirror.

“After you prepared those gorgeous pancakes? That’s the least I can do! And give my regards to number one” Sam teased before Elizabeth left with what meant to be an annoyed look on her face.  
  


Curiously Benedict gazed around the lecture hall as he prepared his slides, perching behind the table. The room was already filled and just as his friends had predicted it most of the attendees were female. The guest lecturer smirked when he spotted the different groups of students and how they scattered around the room. There was a rather big group of fancy young women wearing the latest fashion trends sitting in the centre of the lecture hall. They watched him with great interest and gave him tempting smiles while they whispered to their colleagues. A few swots were hiding behind books in the first rows, their notebooks ready to be filled with every word that left his lips. The girls looked shy and had a bit of wallflowers while the two boys next to them seemed to be clever clogs at their finest. In the back of the room on the left side there was a small group of five guys who were preoccupied with their mobiles. Most certainly no ladies men but they made a nonchalant impression and Benedict was glad there were some students of their kind.  
He took a quick look at his watch. Five more minutes. Benedict got up and took a sip from his water bottle. He could probably start right now; it seemed no one wanted to be late for the first lecture. At least the room was already filled with young women when he entered ten minutes ago. That moment the doors opened and another female walked in. It wasn’t hard to guess where she would seat herself regarding her looks. Surprisingly though she walked over to the boys and sat down next to them after asking if the spot was still free. Their eyes met when she looked up and gave him a soft smile before she bent down to get her notebook. It happened so fast Benedict forgot to return the smile. Hopefully he didn’t seem rude now. When she didn’t look back at him he turned away to put his water bottle down. After checking the time once more he cleared his throat and grabbed his notes. The murmur stopped and he could feel prying eyes all over him when he started his lecture.

 

 _September 24_ th

“Tell us everything!” Bridget plunked down into the couch with a glass of wine in her hand.

Sam invited her and Rose for dinner at her and Elizabeth’s place to catch up on the newest gossip and to share what happened over the summer.

“Tell them more, tell them more was it love at first sight?” Sam tried to imitate John Travolta which caused a lot of laughter.

“There is nothing to tell”, Elizabeth took a sip of wine and leaned back. She knew her friends wouldn’t consider themselves satisfied but it was worth a try.

“Oh come on! We weren’t as lucky as you are. Share with us. Britain’s hottest guy is your lecturer, there has to be _something_ to tell”, Rose put a piece of sushi on her plate and gave Elizabeth a pleading look.

“Have some questions” Bridget swallowed. “How does he look like? Is he really that handsome?”

“First things first, he?” Elizabeth arched an eyebrow at her friend. She would lie if she said his looks didn’t please her. “He is quite handsome. No, he doesn’t wear his hair Sherlock style. Hate to break it to you. It’s auburn and shorter now. He wore a waistcoat and a white shirt. Can’t tell you about the shoes.”

“Waistcoat” Rose gasped.

“And how does he act like? I mean... what did he tell you? What are you going to do in the lecture?” Bridget gave her friend an inquiring look.

“I don’t know. I’ve seen him once, how am I supposed to tell what kind of person he is? He is... uhm” Elizabeth took a bite and took a second to think about what she was going to say next. “It seems he was a little bit nervous yesterday. Bit his lip and stuff.”

Rose whimpered to Sam’s amusement.

“He made a nice impression. Organised. He had a lot of notes and was quite serious about the subject. I guess he wanted to make clear he’s the lecturer and not just here for our entertainment. Regarding all the fangirls you could get that impression” Elizabeth took another sip of her white wine as she continued. “He made some work related jokes in the beginning. I thought that was good. It somehow loosened the atmosphere. Well, I actually really like what he planned for the term. Hopes are high this will be an interesting class.” That wasn’t even a lie. She was really interested in her lecturers view on different topics. He seemed like a nice and interesting person who could offer a new point of view for her.

“What else did he say? And how does his voice sound?”

“You are a fangirl, Rose!” Sam nudged her and laughed.

“I can’t remember his exact words. I’ll record the next lesson tomorrow so you’ll have 60 minutes of Benedict Cumberbatch talking about literature” Elizabeth joked.

“That would be the most sexual thing I had in a year” Bridget exclaimed and caused a lot of laughter.

“No, seriously” Elizabeth said as she calmed down. “His voice is great. He read a poem to us for introduction. Two thirds of the class melted away I guess.” Including me, she added in thoughts. The words coming from his lips and his deep and calm voice filling the lecture hall nearly caught her by surprise.

“Oh the fangirls” Sam sighed. “Are there some cute boys too? Or just annoying chicks?”

“Actually” Elizabeth shifted her weight. “Yes, there are five guys who are actually pretty nice and good looking.”

“Liz, you sneaky lady! I thought you weren’t looking for a new man!”

“I’m not, Rose. They are nice and maybe one could have some fun? I’m going to introduce them sooner or later. Actually they asked me if I wanted to go to the opening party.”

“I hope for you to introduce them. Five is a whole lot. Even for you” Sam drained her glass and gave Elizabeth a stupid wink.

“What does that mean?”

“Oh, nothing? Some more wine anyone?” Sam didn’t answer and poured herself another drink instead. Rose and Bridget held their glasses out.

“I’ll skip today” Elizabeth sighed. “I have to read through the homework your Mr. Perfect wants us to hand in tomorrow.”

“Ooh, isn’t it an oral one?”

“Shut up Bridge!” Elizabeth had to bite back laughter. “Stop it!” she wanted to keep Sam from pouring wine in her glass but it was too late.

“Trust me, you’ll need it with these two” Sam gave her roommate an omniscient look.

“Cheers to a new term and to Liz who has all the hot guys” Rose raised her glass and the girls chinked glasses before returning to chatting about the summer holidays.  
  


Some hours later Elizabeth lay in her bed and faced the ceiling. She put a foot to the ground as if she could stop the room from twisting and turning around her. Damn the wine. And most of all damn Sam for persuading her to participate in their drinking game. The young woman sighed and let her head sink into the pillows. She was tired and exhausted and it was only day two. What a great term this would be.  
Well, she thought to herself. It might actually be an interesting one with that Mr. Cumberbatch as guest lecturer. He seemed really nice. Maybe nice was the wrong word. Interesting. Somehow challenging. Elizabeth shook her head as if to get rid of her thoughts. The introduction he gave for his class caught her. Not only he made the impression he knew what he was talking about but also he seemed to have great interest in conversation about the topic. The questions he asked made Elizabeth think he was actually interested in everyone’s opinion. Probably that’s why he wanted his students to write a short essay on what literature means for them. Homework. Elizabeth casted her eyes open in shock. That homework she wanted to read through before handing it in tomorrow? She didn’t even start writing it yet. Shit!  
With trembling legs she got up and sat to her desk to switch on her laptop. Her eyes hurt by the brightness of the white sheet displayed in front of her. What is literature? What should she write? It was 2am in the morning and she wanted to get some sleep before she had to get up in six hours. Let’s keep it simple she thought when she started typing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment and tell me what you liked or disliked. I'll be grateful for any reviews, tips and suggestions for what should happen (: 
> 
> You can also find me on tumblr via cumberbanon.tumblr.com


	2. What You Will

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben and Elizabeth meet for the first time and share a nice conversation

_September 28 th_

The rain was falling heavily against the windows in the living room of his London House when Benedict put down the papers he just read. He released a deep sigh and reached for the cup on his desk to take a sip of tea as he turned his chair around. Plumes of steam rose in front of his eyes once he softly breathed out, holding the cup against his lips. His weary eyes watched the raindrops trickling down the window pane and listening to the howling wind outside he shivered. The desk lamp next to his closed laptop dipped the room into a soft, warm light that could have easily lull him to sleep if... Well, _if_ there would not have been those papers. 

As if it was an attempt to keep him awake Benedict slapped his thigh, the warmth from holding the cup still on his hand soaked through the fabric of his jeans. Those papers he made his students write were now his to read and it would be a lie if he said he enjoyed it. It is a bit disappointing, he thought to himself, that most of the students seem to have the same opinion. He expected to read a different explanation to the question he asked on every sheet but instead he got recaps of anything he ever said about literature in his interviews. Was it really their opinion too or were they just trying to impress him? Benedict let his head sink into the backrest and closed his eyes.  The first week at university went well so far. The students were nice and seemed to have interest in what he told them. They did not complain when he asked for a short essay and showed great interest when he gave them topics for the presentations they had to do. It was not that big of a surprise the appointments for his consultation-hours were taken immediately still he hardly doubted his decision until he started reading those papers. Of course the students had the best intents but reading his own words in their essays made him question how many of them took the class for the actual subject. Maybe it was a mistake to accept the position as guest lecturer but there was no way out now. He would have to make the best out of it anyways.

With another sigh he casted his eyes open and turned to face the pile of unread essays again. It seemed he was halfway through, he smiled and put his empty cup down. In search for something to catch his eye he looked through the papers on his desk when suddenly a blank sheet with just one line on it fell  into his hands. Benedict arched an eyebrow as he read what was written there. “This is literature.” How provoking, he chuckled. This could actually get interesting, he though as he turned to the page attached to it.

_This is literature._

_I could hand in a paper with just these words on it and it would still be appropriate. I could write your name and not only would it be literature but the first line of a poem in dactylic hexameter. It could be a paper with just a name on it and it would still be an answer to the question “What is literature?”_

_Literature, as the Romans would have said, is everything made from letters. Contrary to what most people think, literature is not written by famous authors exclusively. It is written by people like you and me. Anyone can write it, anyone can read it. Therefore this lecture should not try to answer the question “What is literature?” Instead it should inspire us to find our own answer to the question what good literature is._

_Good literature is not defined by the fact whether something is worth reading or not. Is the first attempt of a child to write its name not worth reading? Is the story of a fun weekend by an eight-year-old something to be ignored? The question what good literature is can only be answered subjectively. It means that you have been touched by what you have read. That the words on those pages inspired you, made you think and made you feel._

_May it be William Shakespeare, may it be Oscar Wilde or Jane Austen, great authors of the past still have the ability to fascinate people. But alongside those classics we must not forget today’s writings which have the capability of becoming classics for future generations._

_In the end a lecture about literature means more than to learn about written words. It means involvement with the past, the present and the future and it ought to inspire us not only to read but to create literature on our own. For one of my favourite authors once wrote: “Writing is like kissing, but without lips. Writing is kissing with the mind.”_

 

_October 1 st_

Elizabeth jumped behind the steering wheel of her car and slammed the door behind her. Accompanied with silent curses she started the motor and turned on the radio before she drove off. It was the first sunny day after a week of grey skies and rain so when she heard her other class was cancelled today she decided to spend the day helping out at her friend’s nearby riding stable. They were grateful for every helping hand and she was appreciative of the time she got to spend surrounded by nature and animals. It was a welcome to change to her life at university where one party seemed to merge into the other. Foolishly, thanks to the sunshine and the happiness, she nearly forgot her appointment with Mr. Cumberbatch today. Not that she scrambled to get one but since they had to do a presentation and he said he would also give feedback on the essays she took one of the few free appointments for October. Originally she had planned on going back early so that she would have had time enough to change and shower before meeting him but after falling asleep with the sun on her face and the birds chirping around her she would be glad if she made it to his office in time.

A red light forced her to stop and she seized the time to check in the mirror. Her cheeks were red from the sunlight and the mascara around her deep green eyes crumbled a bit. She hasn’t had any make up with her to hide the blemishes but even if she had there would be no time left. The traffic light changed to green and Elizabeth started like there was a race to be won. She didn’t even know why she cared about her looks now. It was just an appointment with a lecturer. Nothing special about it. But who was she kidding? No, she wasn’t one of those fangirls but if you get to spend ten minutes with Britain’s most wanted man in a room you don’t want to look like a scarecrow. Not that she was interested in him. She wasn’t. Most definitely she wasn’t. However there was nothing wrong with making a good impression.

Oh, screw it! She wasn’t interested in him and therefore she didn’t have to worry about the impression she made. After all he was just an ordinary person like anybody else, she thought as she turned into the street leading to the campus. Thank god she took her notes with her when she left earlier that morning, it saved her just the five minutes she would have been late if she had to get them from her room. Elizabeth parked the car and grabbed her bag from the passenger seat when she left the car without taking another look in the mirror. It’ll be fine, she straightened herself and dusted off her pants before she walked towards the building Mr. Cumberbatch’s office was in.

 

Benedict leaned on the table when he covered his face in his hands and rubbed his eyes. The afternoon sun was shining through the window behind him and felt warm against his back. Only two more students he had to bear before he finally could get outside. _To bear_... That word was horrible but it was exactly how he felt after having ten appointments today. The girls were nice, indeed. Covered in tons of make-up and some of them smelling as if they had bathed in perfume but they were nice. The only thing that bothered him was the feeling they did all that just to please him. It seemed they only said what they thought he wanted to hear and that circumstance made the appointments increasingly boring.

Once again it knocked on his door. “Come in” he said and straightened himself, putting his glasses back on. Another female voice, another “Hello”. Benedict arranged the documents on his desk and only looked up when he heard the door was closed again. The sight of the person standing in front of him caught him by surprise. This is the first woman to walk in here today, he thought to himself as he looked at the female student who just entered his room. Dressed in a red-blue plaid shirt, dark jeans and worn out nubuck boots that person was a welcome change to all the high-fashioned girls in their heels.

“Mr. Cumberbatch?” the young woman cocked her head and gave him a questioning but warm smile. It was only then he realised he had been staring at her without saying a word.

“Oh, yeah. Hello”, Benedict stood up and reached out to shake her hand. “Please take a seat” he gestured to the chair opposite to his table as he sat down again.

“What a nice room you have” she put her leather jacket over the backrest and took a seat, placing the bag she was carrying on her lap.

“I know sarcasm when I hear it” Benedict chuckled and looked for the folder with his records.

“Was worth a try” the young woman shrugged and dragged a piece of straw from her updo. Looking at it she arched an eyebrow before she glanced back at him. “Sorry for that” she smiled and seemed to blush a bit. Obviously she spent the day outside in the sun.

“No worries, if I had the chance I would spend the day outside too” Benedict gave her a smile and casted his folder open. “With whom do I have the pleasure?”

“Make an educated guess” she opened her bag to get a notebook and a pen.

“John Malkovich?” Benedict looked at his student bursting into a light laughter. “That must be a mistake” he continued while he tried hard to stay serious.

“It’s not your time yet” she laughed and glanced at him with bright eyes that made him smile too.

“A relieving thing to hear, Miss...”

“James. Elizabeth James” the woman said as she put her bag down beside her.

Benedict’s face lightened up when he saw the essay with her name on it. “I could have guessed it” he said, more to himself than to the person sitting opposite to him.

“Why is that?” Ms James once again cocked her head.

“Oh, it’s just your essay was different to most of the others I got” he tried to explain himself.

“And how would you know it’s mine?” she crossed her legs and gave him an inquiring look.

“Uhm...” how could he possibly explain it without sounding too forward? “Well you’re the first one to walk in here who seems to be herself. I had the same impression when reading your essay.”

“I suppose that’s a good thing?”

“It’s a very welcome change” he smiled at her a little longer than before.

“So... let’s get down to business” Ms James shifted her weight and looked down at her notebook.

“To defeat the Huns...” Benedict mumbled as he picked up a pen. From the corner of his eye he could see the young woman chuckling in disbelieve as she shook her head.

“Seems the sent you daughters” she responded and leaned in a little bit.

“Didn’t ask for sons” he lowered his voice a bit and winked at her. Hopefully she didn’t take it too serious.

“Well, I’m not going to continue this because that would take a very wrong direction.”

Benedict tilted his head to his left and blankly looked upwards as if he thought about how to continue. Then suddenly he burst into laughter. “Alright, got it. So about your essay” he looked down at the papers on his desk. “I really enjoyed reading it. As I said it’s nothing I will grade but I felt a little feedback would be nice. And I’m glad you didn’t just hand in the paper with that one sentence.”

“I actually thought about it. I mean it would have answered the question, as I pointed out” she said, obviously pleased by the fact he liked it.

“Oh yes, it would have. But it was nice to have an explanation. Otherwise it would have seemed a little bit like...”

“God is dead?” the student interrupted him.

“Provoking I was going to say. But you’re right” once more he smiled. “The quote was great too. I didn’t know the author before though.”

“He isn’t that famous” Ms James shrugged and twisted her pen between her fingers.

“Alright, I hate to say that but we have to hurry a bit” Benedict said with a glance to his watch. The next appointment was about to start in five minutes. “Do you already have a date for your presentation?”

“I have... sometime in November. And as for a topic I was thinking about something Jane Austen.”

“That’s fine. Just let me know when you have decided which work you want to address.”

“Great” the young woman nodded when she picked up her bag to pack the notebook she hasn’t used. “Is there anything else?” she asked in a friendly way that didn’t make the impression that she wanted to get away.

“If you don’t have any questions” Benedict hesitated a moment. “What do you think about the lecture so far?”

“You’re doing a great job. No fawning here. I really enjoy the lecture and the topics so far and...” a knock on the door interrupted her.

“Wait a minute” Benedict said loud enough so the person on the other side of the door could hear it. Then he turned back to his student, a regretting look upon his face. “Sorry, the last appointment is waiting.”

“Good for you” she got up from her seat and got her jacket. “That means you’ll soon be done for today.”  
“That’s right. Thank you” he held out his hand for her to shake it. “It was nice talking you Miss James” he said and meant it.

“The pleasure was mine, thank you” she let go of his hand and turned around to walk away. When she opened the door the girl waiting outside walked in with tiny steps, her heels clacking on the wooden floor. The last thing Benedict saw before the door shut was a fun but sceptical look on Ms James face when she tried to bite back laughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The quote used is from "Love virtually" by Daniel Glattauer, a very great book which I can really recommend. It's amazaing.  
> The Malkovich reference is about the Nespresso ad once done with George Clooney.  
> The lyrics are from "I'll make a man out of you" from the Disney movie Mulan.  
> "God is dead" refers to Nietzsche.
> 
> English is not my native language but this story has been in my head for a long time and I just felt like writing it down. I hope you enjoy reading it and if so, leave me a comment (: Also leave a comment if you have any remarks or tips, I'll gladly take them!


End file.
